APD may lose 200 officers soon

Albuquerque's chief of police said a public safety crisis is brewing in the Duke City because hundreds of police officers could turn in their badges all at once thanks to proposed changes to their state retirement funds.

The Albuquerque Police Department has upwards of 200 retirement ready employees. APD Chief Ray Schultz said the city could lose all of them within the next few months. The department's already dwindling workforce would be dashed to around 800.

"The effects on public safety across the state could be pretty significant," Schultz said. "This is a big decision a lot of employees have to make."

Twenty-two officers have confirmed their exits already. No matter which way you slice it, that means fewer officers will be available when you call 911.

"Those life safety events, there will be somebody there. Somebody spray-painted the wall on the side of your house may take longer for us to get there for that kind of call," Schultz said.

The state's Public Employees Retirement Association, or PERA, is in peril.

That $6.2 billion unfunded hole in its retirement fund has to be filled or benefits could be cut, but the agency's idea on how to fix it has some officers scared. Part of the proposal could delay the cost of living adjustments, or COLA, for current employees if they put off their retirement.

Schultz said the threat has countless officers asking about retirement.

"Everybody's talking about it, everyone's watching it closely. Some people are saying I don't even want to take a chance," Schultz said.

Target 7 took those concerns to Propst.

"No, I'm not. I'm not worried it'll jeopardize public safety. We take the concerns of public safety very seriously," Propst said.

To prove it, they've already amended the proposal. It would phase in the COLA changes, giving officers more time to make the decision.

Now, those particular proposed pension changes aren't set in stone yet, but Propst said no matter how much local law enforcement might not like the idea, something needs to be done quickly.

"If we don't do something now, what we're proposing today will seem pretty mild compared to what we're going to have to do down the road," Propst said.

In the end, it's up to lawmakers like state Sen. Jerry Ortiz y Pino to make the final call on PERA's problems.

"The people affected are going to scream bloody murder, you're changing the rules of the game after we started playing," Ortiz y Pino said.

Ortiz y Pino doesn't like the current proposal, but that doesn't mean he won't vote for it.

"I'm not ruling it out. I think we can avoid it, but I'm not ruling it out," he said.

That said, Ortiz y Pino isn't buying the police department's claim that the PERA proposal is fueling the retirement fire. He thinks whatever retirements occur in the coming months would happen regardless.

"I think part of this is scare tactics. It's a ploy," Ortiz y Pino said.

There's another issue compounding the potential personnel problems at APD; new recruits are coming in at a snail's pace. Information obtained by Target 7 shows the newest cadet class is only bringing 10 new officers into the ranks.

In the meantime, specialized units may be left taking routine calls.

"We just want to make sure everybody knows, worst case scenario, there will be an impact," Schultz said.